Rota is a very small town in Spain. It is famous for its fruits and vegetables. In particular, it is famous for its tomatoes and pumpkins.
One would think that the soil of this region must be very good. It must be very rich in order to grow such excellent tomatoes and pumpkins. But the soil is not good. It is poor. It is only sand and rock — nothing more. The winds of the ocean blow hard. They have carried away the good soil. They have left only sand in its place. There is also little water. The soil is dry and hard.
The farmers of this region have to work very hard. They work from morning till night. They dig wells wherever there is water. They carry water by hand to their gardens. They use anything and everything to make the soil a little richer around each plant. They cover the young plants with leaves. In this way they protect them from the sun and wind. They watch each plant carefully. They watch the plants which are not strong. They give these plants more water and more attention. They show the plants the same affection they show for their wives or children.
There is a proverb about Rota farmers: the farmer of Rota touches each tomato plant at least forty times a day.
soil 土壤 region 區域, 地方
dig 掘, 挖 protect 保護
affection 情感 proverb 諺語 touch 觸摸
西班牙農民
羅塔是一個很小的西班牙城鎮。它以果蔬聞名，尤以番茄和南瓜最爲出名。
人們會以爲這個地方的土壤肯定很好。能產出如此優良的番茄和南瓜，這裏的土地肯定極其肥沃。但是，這裏的土壤並不好，土地很貧瘠，只有沙子和岩石——別無它物。海風強勁，吹走了良土，只剩下沙子留在原地。這裏缺水，土地又乾又硬。
此地的農民不得不非常辛勤地勞動。他們從早幹到晚。他們在有水的地方挖井，提水到園地，用盡一切方法使作物周圍的土更肥沃。他們拿葉子遮蓋幼苗。這種方法可以保護幼苗免於日曬和風吹。他們關注每一株作物，密切觀察着長得不壯的秧苗，給它們更多的'水分和照料。他們像照料自己的妻子和孩子那樣照料他們的農作物。
說起羅塔的農民，有句諺語是這樣說的： 羅塔農民每天至少要觸摸每一株番茄四十次。
